A Coro Fellow on Pershing Square
My name is Bobby Kobara and I am a Coro Fellow in Coro Southern California’s Fellowship in Public Affairs. The 59th class of Coro Southern California strives to utilize inquiry, in attitude and practice, within various sectors of public affairs in an effort to maximize our adaptive capacity and become effective leaders. Over the next nine months I will be placed in six different sectors within Southern California: nonprofit, political campaign, government, business, labor, and public communications. I have been with Pershing Square Renew for the past three weeks for my nonprofit placement.
William “Holly” Whyte, who is largely credited with pioneering how human behavior is studied in urban settings and inspiring the global placemaking movement, once stated, “It is difficult to design a space that will not attract people. What is remarkable is how often this has been accomplished.” Pershing Square is an example of how this task can be accomplished. The designers of the 1994 iteration of Pershing Square intended for the square to provide an increased sense of security, with an above-ground floor plan surrounded by high walls, and an escape from the city with areas described as open-air rooms; all of which sounds productive on paper. Over two decades later, community members have made it evident that these lofty goals were not necessarily accomplished. There is now a general consensus that it is time for the square to be designed for more practical, enjoyable use.
Pershing Square Renew has learned from the past and is prioritizing the preferences and insights of the community ahead of potentially award-winning, iconic design. They are doing this, in large part, by applying the concept of placemaking. Placemaking is a global movement that emphasizes community participation and seeks to inspire individuals to collectively reimagine and reinvent public spaces. They are not only approaching this project through the lens of placemaking, but are becoming leaders in thinking about public spaces in this way. In pursuit of a square that is loved by those who visit and which cultivates a culture that promotes community ownership, Pershing Square Renew considers the community to be the expert and is utilizing local engagement efforts in every step of their process. This strategy engages those who interact with the square in a conversation, rather than providing a prescription of what the organization believes is the best use of the square.
The process began with the community’s expressed desire for a renewal of Pershing Square followed by community participation in the design competition. Today it continues with the community’s ongoing involvement in creating the vision for the redesign of the square. Finally, it circles back with the organization’s intention to inspire community members to want to be involved in the maintenance and ongoing programming of the square, and their decision to measure success by how the community embraces the space.
Pershing Square Renew continues to give precedence to programming opportunities in the square, rather than physical redevelopment, and incorporates input from the community on their ideal use of the space. They actively seek this input through various outlets including The Table, their weekly event that invites anyone in the square to take a seat and draw and/or write-out how they would like to utilize the square. Their ability to employ this constant hyperlocal focus is one of the reasons Pershing Square Renew’s leadership in this process — as a public-private partnership — is essential; they are the connection between short-term activation and long-term transformation.
This connection bridges the lessons of yesterday, the ideas of today, and the vision for tomorrow is essential, not only for realizing said vision, but also for sustaining it. Through including the influence of the fourth dimension, time, Pershing Square Renew is creating an actively flexible public space that is more equipped and prepared for the unpredictable challenges of the future. As the title of the winning design indicates, Pershing Square is set to become “The Dynamic Heart of Los Angeles”. With the completion of the project coming in several years, the surrounding area including the individuals who make up the community will indubitably change. Downtown L.A. hosts an eclectic population and is seeing an influx of new residents moving in alongside its revitalization. Pershing Square Renew intends to form a “transparent, democratic and accessible space”, as articulated by Henri Bava of Agence Ter, that incorporates the voices of everyone who interacts with it to create an equitable Pershing Square that is enjoyed by everyone. Each individual in this diverse and dynamic community has their own image of what the square should be and, as owners of the public space, deserves to be heard. From what I have observed, Pershing Square Renew’s plan for establishing Pershing Square is through building community engagement and ownership over time, through its outreach efforts, with the hope that it translates to a center of social and experiential connectedness for the Downtown community.
